“I don’t know.”
“We could find out for sure. Send Eli and Seth here.”
“I’m not sure, Flint. If they hurt you, I’d kill them. I won’t lose you again.”
Heart going all mushy in her chest—even though he’d basically admitted to premeditated murder and that should totally terrify her, but it just didn’t—she suppressed a satisfied grin. “How do you feel right now? Is it too hard?”
“It’s not easy.” He sighed. “But the breeze is strong and is helping carry away most of the scent.”
“So then maybe just let them stand out there and see what they do. If they don’t react, then you could send them in here.”
“I don’t—”
“Cain, they’re my friends. I don’t like being separated this way. Plus, I’m going to be honest here, I trust you guys. There aren’t a lot of people here that I know. And things are”—she wanted to tell him, God she wanted to tell him the truth about her—“weird for me right now.”
“Adam told me Layla has changed you.”
Feeling as though time paused, she gazed unblinkingly at the empty ring in front of her. “How much do you know?”
“I…” He paused. “Why are you asking me that?”
Cain was smart. Brilliant actually. Even though he’d never seemed to take his classes seriously, she’d been surprised to learn he had a 4.0 GPA.
He also understood the hive in a way most of the carnies around here didn’t because he’d been the one mainly responsible for hunting them down.
“What exactly did he tell you, Cain?”
He took a deep breath. “That Layla’s bite has transformed you into hive, but that you weren’t turned fully hive either.” He sighed. “But…”
He paused long enough that she had to prod him to continue. “But what?”
“I studied you at the hospital, Flint. Rhi told me this morning you still look the same. That’s not normal. Hive transformations happen almost immediately. If the queen bit you, you should be hive. Even a small dose of her toxin should have done it.”
“Does everyone else know this?” she asked, rubbing her sneakered toes together. If they did, then the lie Adam and Grace told would be out quick, which would only lead to more questions.
“No.” He sounded wary when he said it. “Flint, what’s going on? You’re not telling me something, and I know they’re lying to me.”
Blowing out a deep breath, stomach a sick mess of nerves, she asked, “How do you know all that about the hive?”
She needed to know so that she could figure out what to do. This wasn’t Rhi, or Janet, or even the twins she was talking to. This was Cain. And deep in her gut she knew she could, even should, trust him.
“I’ve studied them, Flint. For years they’ve been all I’ve obsessed over.”
“But what about Eli and Seth? What about Janet and Rhiannon? They hunt with you.”
“Princess, why are you asking me this?” He sounded genuinely irritated and annoyed, but she didn’t feel at all like it was because of her.
“Cain, I… I can’t say anything. Not here. Not now. But please answer my question. Why do you know more than the rest of them? Is this some sort of common knowledge they’d figure out sooner or later?”
“No.” He clipped out the one-word answer.
Breathing a deep sigh of relief, she decided she knew what she had to do. But Cain actually beat her to the punch.
“Meet me at the bunker tonight. Tell Rhiannon to bring you.”
To go from him not wanting to be alone with her to him suddenly wanting a private get-together let her know just how worried he now was. “But is it safe to leave the carnival?”
His hand slid through a crack in the flap and she couldn’t help herself. She grabbed at it, threading her fingers through his.
Just that simple touch did strange and powerful things to her insides. Her stomach bottomed out and filled with the razor-tipped wings of thousands of butterflies. Scooting as close to the tent flap as possible, she rubbed his knuckle with her thumb.
“I won’t let anything happen to you again, Flint. I swear.”
Tugging on his hand so that she could bring it to her lips, she planted a warm kiss on his palm.
His fingers twitched.
“Cain,” she whispered.
He grunted but didn’t seem to be able to speak. She kissed his palm again, then rubbed her cheek against his warmth.
“Princess…”
She hated that she stunk to him. Literally. It sucked so bad. But it was also good to know that she wasn’t the only one suffering.
“We’re going to find Abel. I promise,” she said to him, knowing how much he was probably suffering because of that.
Palming her cheek, his thumb traced the curve of her jaw. “The bunker. I’ll send Eli and Seth to you in a minute.”
There was a tug, as though he meant to leave her, and she clenched his hand tighter. “Don’t go.”
He sighed loud and long. “I have to go, Flint. I—”
She could practically hear him scowl when he asked, “The sword. You mentioned something about that this morning. I’d forgotten all about it. Do you still have it? Can I see it?”
Nibbling on the corner of her lip, she was suddenly relieved that it’d vanished. If that thing was a fairy item, then brandishing it about probably hadn’t been the best of ideas. Then again, she was assuming it’d vanished and not been stolen.
“I don’t know.” She said it slowly.
“You don’t know?”
She shook her head. “I stuck it in my book bag this morning. The sword’s pretty big though, and it was poking out of the top. When I got here I sort of forgot about leaving the bag on my floorboard, and by the time I got back to the truck it was gone and there was just a mound of dirt in its place.”
“Did your dad find it?”
She frowned. “He saw me with it this morning, but considering we work in a circus, it didn’t strike him as anything particularly odd. I don’t think he would have cared. But honestly, I’m not sure anyone even stole it. Manny said he didn’t see or smell anyone around.”
“That’s not right, Flint. Things don’t just up and disappear. But Manny wouldn’t lie either. He can’t.”
“Like, literally can’t?”
She heard the toe of his boot dragging through the dirt. Already she could sense the wheelhouse of his mind whirring in a million different directions.
God, she badly wanted to tell him the truth. Wanted to tell him that she was part fairy and that her gut was leaning more on the side of the disappearance having something to do with that rather than anything dastardly.
“Literally can’t,” he all but growled. “Flint, I have to go. I’m sorry. But I still have a lot of things to do before the scouting party leaves tonight. I’m so sorry, princess.”
She didn’t want to let him go, but knew she didn’t have a choice. Dropping his hand, she wrapped her arms around herself.
“I can’t wait until this is over.”
But when he didn’t answer back she knew he’d gone.
39
Cain
Someone was lying to him. Either Flint, or Adam and Grace. Or, as his gut was insisting was the actual case, all three.
Although he sensed that whatever Flint was keeping from him she didn’t want to.
Eli and Seth spotted him when he was halfway to his trailer. Seth waved in greeting.
“Hey, man, we’re thinking about heading out for another recon—”
“Scratch that.” Cain didn’t break stride. “Flint wants to see if you guys can handle her new scent.”
“New scent?” Eli asked, eyes narrowed.
Huffing, Cain looked at guys more brothers than cousins. “She’s changing, man.”
“The bite.” Seth nodded.
“Yeah, but it’s more than that.” Cain pounded up his steps, opened his door, and headed immediately for the book Grace had handed him, which was still sitti
ng on the kitchen counter. “I can’t smell hive, not the way she could,” he muttered as he picked up the weighty thing and cracked it open, and just like last night the pages were still irritatingly empty.
Snarling, he slapped it shut and took several calming breaths. “Something’s going on with her. Something other than what they’re telling us.”
Eli glanced at the book. “What’s that?”
“A mystery. And it’s tied to her.” Cain tapped the cover absentmindedly. “I think Grace was giving me a clue, but until Flint tells me the rest, I don’t think this book will be anything other than a paperweight at this point. Which is why I need you guys to head over to her training tent and see if you can handle being around her. I want her watched at all times. No one is to go in or go out without my approval first. Got it?”
The twins nodded. They looked worried, but years of obeying orders had them holding their tongues.
“Yeah. Got it, boss.”
Flint
* * *
Carlito must have told Adam she’d failed to turn into a slobbering wolf, because no sooner had Cain vanished than a revolving door of “teachers” came. One right after another.
First there’d been a Nephilim who’d been able to literally make her skin bleed.
She hadn’t known whether to be more concerned by the fact that the heavy working of his throat made him appear suspiciously hungry every time he looked at her, or that her shirt, which had once been so white, was now a brownish-red color. Every time she wiped her brow with the back of her wrist and caught a whiff of herself, she wanted to vomit from the overwhelming stench of her own blood.
While the bleeding hadn’t hurt exactly, she’d felt the thick stuff pouring out of her nose, eyes, and ears, and that had been far from comfortable.
The sexy French Cajun with curly brown hair hadn’t even stayed the full hour. Ten minutes of trying to get her to call to his blood had convinced him she had no innate gift for the dark art.
Zander—whom she’d learned was a glutton Nephilim and could control the blood of any creature living or dead—had smiled at her as he’d made to exit, but not before saying in a chilling voice, “Better wash that off, bébé, blood is a bad t’ing to wear in a place such as dis.”
Heart thundering, pulse fluttering like a hummingbird’s wings, she’d sailed over the rows of chairs between her and the exit and headed toward the water spigot hidden behind the tent.
She’d not cared who’d seen her, she’d ripped the shirt off, exposing the very same green bra she’d once exposed to the world when Abel had failed to let her in on the secret that the Hole wasn’t a club but a swimming spot.
Dropping to her knees, she rolled the disgusting shirt up and ran it under the water, then wiped herself down as best she could.
Smearing it more than anything else, she clenched her teeth and stuck her head under the water. The icy shock broke her out in a wash of goose bumps. Grunting, she rubbed at her face and chest with the tail of her wet shirt.
She probably looked ridiculous lying down on the thick bed of hay under the waterspout, but she really didn’t care at the moment.
There were a couple of giggles, some whispered murmurings, but it barely fazed her. That was until she heard a familiar voice shriek.
“Flint, oh my God.” Rhi’s bell-like voice cut through her panic as she gargled with water to try to get the vomit-inducing taste out of her mouth.
Blinking away the droplets stuck in her lashes, she moved her head out from under the spray. “Huh?”
Rhiannon wore an exasperated look and was carrying a thick towel in one hand and a shirt in another. “Do you have any idea how tempting you look right now?”
“’Scuse me?” She scrunched her nose before snatching the plush towel out of her friend’s hand and scrubbing her face with it.
Rhiannon’s fingers were firm as they dug into her elbow and dragged her back to the tent. “Need I remind you, Flinty, that your boyfriend is prone to King Kong bouts of rage? Not only are you half-naked out here…” She shoved the tent flap open before pushing Flint inside it. “But you’re also covered in blood, which is one of the major food groups for most of the guys here today.”
Grimacing, Flint shrugged, rubbing the towel furiously over her wet hair to try to dry it. Man, she was going to have a head full of frizz when it finally was.
“I didn’t exactly ask to have Zander do that to me, okay? And as to the bra, couldn’t be helped. I wasn’t getting clean enough with my shirt on.”
For a moment Rhi’s eyes dropped to Flint’s arm. The one sporting the new tattoo she’d forgotten all about. Curiosity lit up her friend’s frosty blue eyes, but to Rhi’s credit, she didn’t ask.
This lie was already becoming a huge burden.
“Dude,” Rhi said before exchanging the towel for the new, clean shirt, “I don’t envy you. Adam’s really putting you through your paces. But do you feel like it’s working at all?”
Shrugging, Flint quickly yanked the navy-blue T-shirt over her head. She didn’t even need to ask who it belonged to. There was a print of an anime-looking baby tiger on the front. She’d seen Janet wear the shirt in school before.
Unfortunately, her bra was wet, and now so was the nice, dry shirt.
“Grr,” Flint growled. “Stupid Zander.” She glanced down at her legs. At least she’d worn black jogging pants. They were also tacky with blood, but it didn’t show. “My dad’s gonna freak when he smells me.”
Rhiannon’s lips twitched. “Thankfully you have a trailer here now. I’m just putting the finishing touches on the place before you finish. But the water’s working, so you can take a shower when you’re done for the day.”
“Thanks. That was really sweet. But you didn’t need to.”
Rhi shrugged. “Just being a friend.”
The smile gradually slipped from Flint’s face as she began to think about what the meaning of having her own trailer implied. So much had changed in just a few short days. She was becoming a mutant. Abel was still missing. And Janet was… suffering.
When she thought too much about those things, Flint wanted to cry. She plopped down on the seat behind her.
“You okay?” Rhi asked softly and then she chuckled when Flint glared at her. “Never mind, scratch that. Of course you’re not.”
“It’s not that.” Flint blew out a raspberry. “I’m just… worried.”
“About what Layla did to you?” Rhi sat in the chair next to her.
She looked so young and helpless dressed as she was, her hair pulled back in a tight bun and wearing that glittering costume makeup. Not at all like something that could tear the flesh right off your body without a second’s thought.
“That. And Abel. Janet. I really want to see her.”
Rhiannon took a deep breath. “Flint, I didn’t want to tell you this earlier because I didn’t want you to freak. But Janet’s slipped into a coma, trance, whatever you want to call it.”
“Oh no,” Flint breathed. Why had no one told her just how bad things had actually gotten?
As if she’d read her mind, Rhiannon shook her head. “We didn’t tell you, Flint, because you’re still recovering. And there’s nothing you can do. There’s nothing anyone can do, honestly.”
“Is she gonna die?”
Tucking a curl of loose blond hair behind her ear, Rhi shook her head. “I hope not. If Abel comes back safe and sound, then I’m pretty sure this is entirely reversible.”
It was all Flint could do not to blab the truth to her friend. To tell her that not only was she not as human as they thought, but that she also had no soul. That Katy had told her she’d lose any bit of what it meant to be herself to the instinct of the fairy blood coursing through her veins.
That maybe she was more of a monster than any of them were.
“Our bond is for life,” Rhiannon continued.
“Isn’t that the way it is for most monsters?”
“Yeah, but it’s kind of different
too. If a berserker’s mate dies, they’ll probably just go mad, but if Abel dies, so does she. His lifeline has literally been joined to hers. The more time Abel and Janet spent together, the more attuned to his soul she became. To the point that if he got a paper cut she’d feel it. The suckiest part of all this is that Abel never has to love her back. It’s probably the most unfair, most lopsided form of bonding there is.”
She swallowed hard, and Flint wanted to cry for her friend.
Yanking her in for a hug, Flint rubbed her back. “I didn’t know.”
Rhiannon sniffled, rubbing at her nose. “How could you? It’s not like shadow demons come with a pamphlet. It’s embarrassing and something we don’t like to tell just anyone.”
“Rhi.” She pushed her friend back just a bit so that she could see her face. “I’m so sorry. You’re right, I didn’t know. Which means not only for Abel’s sake, but Janet’s sake, we need to get him back.”
“Yeah, but I should have been able to stop this. I’m Abel’s kanlungan, he was my responsibility, and he slipped through my fingers.” A pinprick of fire danced through her blue eyes, a sure sign of her anger.
Grabbing her by the shoulder, Flint squeezed. “But you can’t blame yourself for that. Layla knew us all by heart. She knew how we’d react. I bet she even knows how we think. She studied us like the lab rats she kept in her trailer. She was the enemy we never prepared for, and none of us stood a chance against her.”
They didn’t talk much after that, but Flint asked Rhiannon if she’d be willing to go with her to Cain’s bunker later in the evening once things had wound down.
“Yeah. That’s fine.” Rhi stood and dusted off her tutu. “Shows are about to get started here in a bit anyway. I need to get going. Good luck with your training.”
They hugged briefly but fiercely.
With a small grin and wave, Rhi made her escape after that.
And Flint came face-to-face with her next “teacher.” A scruffy, bearded guy who stood at least six feet, wore a golden hoop earring in his left ear, had a shaved head, and a belly that moved when he did. He never spoke a word, simply set up a target in the center of the ring, withdrew a bow he’d had slung over his right shoulder. Nocked an arrow from his quiver and proceeded to hit the bull’s-eye three times in a row in rapid succession.
The Complete Tempted Series Page 42